UK Official Warns of Limits on Media

United Kingdom Education Secretary Michael Gove, a former journalist, appeared before the long-running Leveson inquiry into British press standards, warning against media regulations that could restrict free speech.

While he conceded that there have been cases where journalists behaved in ways that were "deplorable," he said that in terms of regulation, the question is: "Might the cure, in certain circumstances, be worse than the disease?" Gove expressed concerns about the cost to "liberty and the culture of freedom" if regulation went too far. The Leveson inquiry is examining British media practices and preparing proposals for the U.K. government on possible press regulation. Established by the U.K. government last summer in the wake of a phone-hacking scandal at News Corp.'s now-closed News of the World tabloid, the inquiry has been scrutinizing reporting tactics and the relationship between British politicians and the media, which have been criticized as overly cozy.